Vertices
by Aldapan
Summary: (AU/T): Chihiro watches her family perish before her, killed by the gods who want to reclaim the land her very village is built on. A rigorous process of healing under the gentle tutelage of Haku opens many wounds and scars many others as she they both come to terms with the bitter terms of this new reality. Based on the song 1944 by Jamala.
1. Chapter 1

Vertices

Chapter I

_I could not live my childhood there_

_because you took away our land._

(1944 - Jamala)

A/N: Short story. Coexistence and retribution. See A/N at the end. Don't own SA, just this wonky world we somehow throw characters into.

* * *

_When strangers are coming, _

_They come to your house, _

_They kill you all and say, _

_We're not guilty. _

"You shouldn't be running around without your cloak," Chihiro's mother scolded her as she caught sight of her young daughter trying to sneak out the front door of their humble abode nestled deep within the mountains. Chihiro's back straightened as she gave her mother a wavering smile, caught in the act, and slowly reached for the white cloak decorated with blue geometric patterns that had been hanging by the door. Her mother gave her a knowing look, fairly certain that her daughter would try to shed the garment as soon as she left her line of sight.

"Sorry," Chihiro replied bashfully as she fastened the heavy garment closed, the hood dangling behind her.

"You will be sorry if you get sick without it," Her mother chided her with an arched brow. "Remember to stay on the footpath—you know what happens if you don't." Chihiro pulled a stubborn face as she eyed her mother with a heady look, eventually succumbing to her mother's warning knowing that they came from somewhere. Another teen had wandered from the footpath few months prior and the whispers of the elders were growing louder and louder as the enemy forces drew closer and closer to their isolated village. They would catch occasional snatches of news from stragglers who managed to escape the cruel hands of their foes, each tale more and more grime and horrifying than previous ones. The teen's body had never been recovered, leading the village to heavily speculate on his fate.

"I will," Chihiro said reassuringly as she unlatched the two locks on the door, prying it open as a cool breeze whistled fast her frame. She shivered beneath the material of the cloak, surprised that it was this cold outside so early in autumn. Turning so that her chestnut locks billowed out behind her, she gave her mother a snappy wave as she retreated through the door and closed it behind her, the figure of her mother standing at the stove over a pot of soup fresh in her mind.

Chihiro trotted through the smattering of huts, weary eyes peering at her, but she ignored the villager's stares as she made her way towards the footpath that snaked down the mountain towards the much larger town at the foot of the massive mound. Glancing upwards at the sun, she calculated she had a few good hours of daylight left to take advantage of her time in the town and collect what she needed to collect before having to make the gruelling hike back up to the enclave of families that opted to live closer to nature. She had often scoffed her parents' insistence that growing up in conjuncture with nature was much more beneficial for her as a person, allowing her a steady appreciation of the Earth and what she provided to ensure that she became a more well rounded individual.

She, on the other hand, longed to move to the much larger village and find fulfillment amongst the libraries and artisans that seemed content with their larger colony.

Moving along the footpath as she took in the sounds of the forest, she could hear the river in the distance—strong and bubbling, a constant source of danger and life—, the calls of the magpies from the green canopies, the creaking of the trees, and the whistling of the autumn breeze that rustled the leaves. It was an ideal soundtrack to her brisk walk down the mountain, something that reminded her that she was fortunate to live in an area relatively unaffected by the conflicts in the much larger urban gatherings. She knew that there were horrific things happening in the far-off lands that marked the border between their lands and her people's but it had been out of mind, out of sight other than the idle chatter that they received from people seeking refuge in their mountain village.

It took her another hour to make it to the gate at the entrance of the village, Chihiro nodding at the two guards that waved her through—she had been a constant visitor to the point that she knew the guards and their rotations and their habits. She would occasionally bring them berry liquor that her father made or would shove some fresh bread into their hands. As she passed under the impressive wooden gates, she trained her sights on the centre of the village where there was a massive fountain fed by the river that ran under the village and cycled its waters through the elaborate stone structure. It was a meeting place for her and her friend Rumi, a native of the lower village, and they would meet at the same time on the same day to bumble about and catch up with gossip as well as drink the creamy coffee that Rumi's mother prepared.

As she made a beeline for the fountain, she realized that there was someone else waiting at the fountain, perched on the rim of the impressive structure. His hair was short and angular, seeming to reflect back a blackish green in the warm sunlight, and he was dressed in plain clothes that gave away no clues as to his origins. His eyes were half lidded as he lifted his head slightly to acknowledge her presence, a brilliant emerald green meeting her dark brown as she rounded the fountain and settled opposite him, her back rigid as she felt that stare affix upon her frame. He certainly was not someone she had seen before but she also knew that the influx of others from other lands surely brought new faces that she would not have seen prior. Her shoulders lost their tension as she realized that he had finished observing her and had turned his gaze back to staring at nothing in particular.

Chihiro felt her gaze slid to him to eye him out of her peripheral vision, still slightly unsettled by his presence: there was something grandiose and odd about this green eyed stranger that she seemed unable to comprehend. There was a sense of controlled calmness, a cold calculating nature that brewed beneath his half-lidded stare, and she felt a warning bell go off in her head that this stranger may have seen things that changed his behaviour and how he accepted the world around him. The empty stare that peered into an unseen void, the stillness of his posture as he did not move to even look at her once again—it left something coiling in her stomach that wrung and hissed angrily as she tried to move her gaze away from him but was unable to do so.

"_Chihiro_!" Her head darted up as she saw Rumi walking quickly towards the fountain, her hand stretched upwards in a friendly wave and Chihiro felt great relief at the fact that her friend had arrived at the opportune moment. Rumi's own cloak, white and red, cascaded around her gracefully as her friendly face peeked out from beneath the comically oversized hood, her rounded cheeks pink from the cool air in the village. Chihiro slid off the edge of the fountain, walking steadily towards her approaching friend to close the distance. Rumi intercepted Chihiro into her arms and wrapped her into a jovial hug, to which Chihiro returned it quickly as she shifted their bodies towards a smaller road that would open into an intimate plaza where they could converse in tranquil privacy.

"Who is that man there?" Chihiro mumbled so that only Rumi could hear her.

"What man?" Rumi questioned, her voice baffled as she released Chihiro from her crushing hug and peered over her friend's shoulder. "There's no one there?" Her voice was confused as something registered on her face that made Chihiro's back stiffen momentarily: Chihiro slowly turned her head, her eyes wary as she realized that the man that had been resting on the edge of the fountain was no longer there, nothing even hinting that he had occupied the space. There had been no footsteps or any perceive evidence that Chihiro had seen the man with a brilliant green stare and she felt a shiver crawl up her arms as she gave Rumi a half smile.

"You okay, Chihiro?" Rumi enquired, her head tilting. "You sure the mountain air isn't getting to your brain?" Chihiro gave her a mildly annoyed look, the teasing remarks typical from those who lived at the base of the mountain. It was true that the higher altitude could cause bizarre behaviour in the human body, especially if one was unaccustomed, but it rarely happened to those who lived in the mountain and traveled downwards. Chihiro had iron lungs, having grown up in the thin layer of oxygen, and had never once felt the effects of the change in elevation. She had seen Rumi's struggles when she occasionally climbed the mountain path to visit Chihiro; Rumi would often need a good hour or so to acclimatize and a strong brew of the tea that natives offered to their visitors to help ease the disorientation.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Chihiro muttered as she blinked dumbly, unsure as if she was imagining things or the man had slipped away undetected. Her internal argument was that, that sense of dread had not vanished along with him and she felt her guard spike up in drives. Her brown eyes were dazed as she stared at the fountain, trying to imagine the still form of the green eyed man and his lack of movement, truly perplexed by the situation. Rumi had approached her from the same direction that the man was seated, meaning that she should have at least seen him unless Rumi was blissfully unaware of her surroundings and did not take stock of what happened around her.

"You _sure?_"

"_Yes, yes,_" Chihiro said dismissively as she felt her cheeks strain at the overcompensating smile she gave her friend. Rumi gave her a sceptical look, her brown eyes unimpressed with Chihiro's odd display, but she shrugged it off as she tugged her friend's hand towards her mother's home where the hot coffee would be waiting for them. The two girls skittered off, Chihiro's head unconsciously turning as she glanced back at the fountain, only to see that it was still unoccupied and there was no trace of anybody having been there.

* * *

As Chihiro and Rumi lounged comfortably on the elegant sofa that Rumi's mother had recently finished upholstering, coffee cups resting on their laps as they drank their third or fourth cup, they were both mum as they spread the blanket a bit more to cover their legs. The air was much damper at the base of the mountain and the chill was much more noticeable. Chihiro knew that her walk back up the mountain to her home would be miserable, cursing the impending winter, and it would be a brutal journey given that she knew she should have left at least a hour ago. The promise of the creamy coffee had outweighed her common sense, much to her bewildered bemusement, and she had given into Rumi and her mother's insistence that she stay for another one.

"Are you sure you don't want to spend the night?" Rumi asked as her fingers wrapped around the tall mug, sipping at the warm drink as she peered at Chihiro over the rim. "It's no trouble at all."

"I agree, dear, you shouldn't be wandering back up the mountain in the dark," Rumi's mother remarked as she looked up from her sewing, giving Chihiro a maternal smile that was gentle. "We have extra bedding, you should stay. It would keep my mind at ease."

"My parents would worry if I didn't come home without any explanation," Chihiro said with a tilt of her head, an apologetic flicker on her lips. Rumi and her mother exchanged incredulous looks, unsure as if to question the young woman's logic of arriving home under the cover of inky darkness being safer than staying put in the village for an image and swallowing the verbal lashing the following morning.

"You're sure?"

"I'm sure," Chihiro said reassuringly. "It's a straight shot up the mountain, it's not too bad!" Rumi's mother gave her another gawking look full of concern, but she sighed as she realized that it would be an enormous task trying to convince the young woman of the contrary. Chihiro had always been much more humble in her behaviour, which could have been mistaken for apathy or disinterest, and she was hardly one to impose herself on others. Rumi, when she had first met Chihiro, had said that she looked fairly sad and withdrawn and it had only been through forging a strong bond with her that the brown eyed girl from the mountains had become much more engaged with the world around her and started to smile and laugh more.

"In fact, I should get going," Chihiro said as she glanced out the window, the sky beginning its ceremonial retreat into darkness. The red and yellow tendrils that streaked across the canvas were signalling her that she had overstayed her welcome and that she was castigating herself to an arduous journey back up the mountain. "Thank you for the coffee."

"Of course, dear," Rumi's mother answered as she watched Chihiro shrug into her cloak, tying it securely around her tiny frame as she freed her ponytail from the tangle of the hood and let it drape over her shoulder. She noted, in grand contrast from her own daughter's behaviour, that Chihiro moved with a certain purpose and grace to her that seemed to come from having been raised in a hardier environment. Rumi was arguably pampered and lazy in many respects, whereas her friend was much more autonomous and independent in her actions. She seemed capable of handling herself in situations that required a much more critical assessment of the circumstances whilst Rumi was less likely to act out. Chihiro's arguably independent nature was hardly rebellious in nature, Rumi's mother chalked it up to the girl being much more conscious of her social behaviour and outward appearance.

"I'll see you next week, but… you're _sure_ you don't want to stay?" Rumi's brow furrowed as Chihiro shook her head and gave her friend a soft smile. "At least take a lantern?"

Chihiro accepted Rumi's family's spare oil lantern that was brought to life with the match that was struck against the wick, the lantern glowing and reflecting in Chihiro's dark brown eyes. She held it up to inspect it, making sure it was securely fastened to its holder, before nodding tiredly at Rumi and her mother: "I'll see you in a few days then?"

As she closed the door behind her and stared towards the mountain, she felt that sense of lurking dread creep up on her once again as she glanced around her, trying to take in the narrow street where Rumi's house was located. The village was built on a grid system that had been easy to master and she knew the quickest routes to get to the access point to the foot path, ensuring that she did not waste more time than necessary. Chihiro huffed as she tried to shake off the horrid feeling that was blanketing her mind as she set a brisk gait towards the road that would spit her out onto the walking path that snaked back up the mountain.

The village was oddly quiet, normally it was quiet lively with people returning to their homes in the twilight, but there were barely any people on the street. The shops seemed to have been closed a bit earlier as well, prompting Chihiro racking her mind to see if there was any sort of occasion that would have merited such activity. There was no holiday or celebration that she was aware of and she felt uneasy as she ghosted by the bookshop that she liked to frequent with the grouchy old shopkeeper whose knowledge was infinite. There was something ominous in the air that plucked at her subconscious and she felt the first wave of regret wash over her for not accepting Rumi's offer to stay the night.

Creeping towards the last turn before she would be set off on the mountain path, she halted in her tracks as an odd smell tickled her nose, her head swivelling towards the mountain top as she squinted through the fading light. There was a burning smell, nothing to atypical for the village that burned wood to keep warm, but she knew that it was still too early in the season for fires to be lit. She knew her father had been rationing the firewood and calculating how much he would need to provide his family with warmth for the winter but he himself had been clear that it would be another fortnight before they would put their fireplace to use.

Glancing behind her at the houses that were fairly dark, she contemplated pivoting around and trotting back to Rumi's family's home and staying the night but she knew that her mother's verbal lashing would be terrible and she would probably be banned from traveling to the village for a spell. Gritting her teeth in annoyance and uncertainty with regards to what to do, Chihiro rounded the corner and started up the steep path that was darker than the village due to the lack of light from the trees blocking out the sunlight.

The path itself was intimidating at night, seeming to take on a much more nefarious personality under the cover of shadowy darkness, and she sometimes imagined creatures leering at her from the trees or the thick undergrowth. Chihiro always surprised herself by how efficiently she could scale the walking path when she let her mind wander to such thoughts, her pace picking up significantly as she covered more ground by opening her stride. Thankful for Rumi's lantern, she held it up in front of her to give her a small pool of light that illuminated the path enough to spot any obstacles that she could stumble or trip over en route to her village.

Halfway up the path, the smell grew stronger and Chihiro froze in her steps, her eyes widening as she felt the acrid smell of burning invade her nose with a force to be reckoned with. Her dark eyes peered through the darkness uneasily, her feet seeming to want to turn around and run back down the mountain and call for help, but she was unsure as to why. There was something in the air that settled poorly on her shoulders and that lingering sense of dread reared up its head once again and gnashed its teeth at her as she bit her lip nervously. Being caught alone out on the path at night was a very stern reality that was ingrained into all the villagers at the top of the mountain but she had never felt her senses go haywire prior to that very moment.

The villagers were extremely cautious with fire, knowing that they had very limited supplies of water and that help was very far away, and she found herself theorizing that someone had probably left something sitting too long on the stove and it caught fire. Still, Chihiro reckoned, it would have been taken care of immediately and the panic would have ceased. She felt her mouth frown as she squinted through the darkness beyond the puddle of muted golden light that emitted from the lantern and she could have sworn that the shadows danced a bit more maliciously as they streaked from tree to tree, avoiding her lantern's reach in an elaborate game of tag.

The smell was intensifying and as she crested one of the last hills before the path flattened significantly, she inhaled a heavy gasp as she nearly lost her grasp on the lantern. There was an eerie orange-red glow that outlined the skyline, a hazy grey cloud floating upwards towards the heavens. Chihiro's eyes narrowed as she pushed forward, despite her knee protesting slightly at the sudden increase in speed, and she sped over the grassy path as she pushed her way forward towards her small rural village tucked away in the privacy of the mountain. The sinking feeling returned seven-fold and she suspected that something had gone horribly wrong in her absence as she rushed towards the gathering of houses, her cloak flapping behind her.

It was only when she was a mere five hundred meters from the break in the trees that another scent mixed with the burning and it was a sickly sweet that made her stomach churn. To that sickly sweetness, there was a coppery undertone that seemed to permeate her nose and she nearly rejected the thin contents of her stomach into the grass as the combination of the three scents became too much. Swallowing back the acidic lump in her throat, she willed herself to draw closer to see what was going on, despite the fact her mind was hollering at her to run away and run back down the face of the mountain to the safety of the bigger village to round up some support from there before approaching her home.

Closing the last few meters of distance, she froze again in her tracks as everything came together into a grotesque image that she would have never imagined. All the rumours that were floating around from the other points of the country, all the whispers about the enemies creeping closer and closer, overthrowing and dominating their lands that had been in their people's controls for generations—all of them slammed into her with the mighty force of a storm as she fell to her knees, the lantern flying from her hands and breaking against the hard ground as the fire spilled from the glass confines and licked at the grass. She had always believed that her village would be safe, a stronghold in the unfavourable terrain, and that she would not have to worry about them intruding in what was the land that was lovingly tended to by her family and fellow villagers.

"_No,_" She rasped as she heard the tell-tale sounds of a wooden structure crumbling to the ground, a family losing their home, their history, their memories in an act against their kind. Her eyes welled with tears from the emotional overload and the smoke that was wrapping around her and threatening to suffocate her, her hands balling into fists in the grass as she tried to steady her breathing before pushing herself to her feet and forcing her body to move forward in the hopes of finding her own family. She had heard very little from the survivors other other attacks, but she knew that many did not emerge from the raids alive or were badly injured to the point they wished death upon themselves as opposed to living with such atrocious scars and deformations.

Chihiro was mere metres from the first houses when she heard a bone-chilling scream originate from within one of them followed by what sounded like soft skin being penetrated with a sword. She nearly wretched by forced herself to look away, tearing away from the house and trying to mask herself within the smoke as best as she could to avoid being detected. She knew that the enemy that she was against was able to see through the smoke regardless of it cloaking her from their vision, them being the superior species as they slowly reclaimed everything that they thought their own. She choked as the smoke entered her fragile lungs but refused to back down as she picked her way through the structures in flames towards her own house which was towards the back of the cluster.

More screams, moans, and groans infiltrated her ears and she tried not to let her eyes drag to where it sounded they were coming from, her mind playing heavily on her heart as she knew that one of the houses had three young children that inhabited its four walls. Chihiro stumbled forward as she nearly tripped and fell into a burning pile of wood, but she managed to regain her balance as she counterbalanced and swung around the last corner of the house. She spotted her family home, coated in a fresh bath of aggressive flames, and she cried out, clasping her hands over her mouth in sheer terror as she realized that the door was completely coated in red embers and flames that saluted her and taunted her, beckoning her forward as she shuffled her feet. She ripped her head around in all directions, desperate to spot any sort of life from the less than eighty people that lived in the village, but the few that were out in the street were bleeding severely or were mere corpses withering away into ashes as the fire ripped at their clothes.

Stuttering as she coughed heavily, the smoke an obnoxious blanket on her body, she back-pedalled and retreated towards the trees where she prayed desperately that some of the villagers and her parents had escaped to once they realized that they were under siege. Their village was tiny and there were very few things left to destroy once they attacked the abodes, the invaders seeming to have moved on after leaving their wake of destruction. Chihiro blinked rapidly as she tried to not let the ash and smoke bleed into her eyes, and she curled down as she tried to see through the flames to see if there was anything or anyone left alive. She imagined that the few livestock kept in the village had, had their throats cut or had been caught within the fire and perished from smoke inhalation, something that gave her great discomfort at imagining the baby lambs and the newly born calf dropping dead on the spot.

"_Mom…. Dad_…" She whispered in a raspy voice, the smoke coating the inside of her throat, her hands clenching at the folds of her cloak desperately as her mind raced as she tried to think of what to do next. Her options were fairly limited: she knew that if she remained here, she could potentially be killed by the enemies that had brought her tiny village to its defenceless knees—she also knew that running down the mountain would be a futile attempt given that it would take too much time for her to rouse any help from the now slumbering village and people would panic and throw things into a frenzy. Chihiro could not determine for sure if the village at the foot of the mountain would be the next target, but she could imagine that it would be the most logical decision for the invaders. Grunting as she grit her teeth, she pushed her belly against the ground and slowly crawled away from the burning village, determined to keep low to the ground in the attempts to avoid detection if there was any danger lingering in the area.

She crept along the hard ground, staining her white cloak browns, greens, and reds as she looked pathetically over her shoulder as the reddish hue of the burning village grew brighter against the dark sky. Chihiro knew that all her possessions, her family's treasures and heirlooms, and their house were completely wiped out from the Earth. There had been small trinkets passed from generation to generation, books, papers, and ceremonial clothes and garments that were irreplaceable as they were testaments to her family's history on the lands. She felt her heart pang in sorrow at such a great loss—they were unrecoverable sentimental objects and she could almost hear her ancestors bawling in the chaos.

Deciding to creep towards the river, Chihiro changed course as she slowly made her way along the wild underbrush, her brown eyes glowering into the darkness as though to ward off any predatory creatures that were watching her with baited interested. She knew that the river was another kilometre or so away and she was determined to get there to at least devise some sort of strategy to be able to warn those in the village below or wait until the fires died out on their own before venturing back to inspect the remains and see if there was any trace of her parents. She knew it was a risky move, the river was a great source of pain and suffering for humans, but it was better to be out in the open where she could see and be seen, at least evening out that major disadvantage.

It was a harsh trail to cover and she found herself pausing at random intervals to try and catch her breath, unable to keep a steady pace as the terrain was bumpy and uneven. The only consolation was she could hear the river in the distance, its strong currents smashing against its shores and the rocks that jutted out from the bottom of the riverbed. Chihiro felt her lungs were on the verge of collapsing, her cloak snagging on prickly plants, her arms slowly becoming a topographic map of scratches, cuts, and slivers. She persisted though, only stopping when she needed, and she kept her wary guard up the entire time as she dragged herself closer and closer to the river, her belly never lifting from the ground. The adrenaline that was coursing through her veins was enough to fuel her but even she knew that it was a temporary aid that would eventually peter out and she would be truly on the edge of exhaustion.

As the river came into sight, she sighed in relief as she managed to yank herself up from the ground and stumble the last few meters, coming to fall into a pile of limbs on the banks of the shore as she felt everything give out from beneath her. The world was spinning, her mind was hazy from the fires and the charred corpses and houses that she crossed paths with, and she felt disoriented as the rush of fear, anxiety, and terror caught up with her and assaulted her brain. She felt the tears that had refused to fall in her escape well in her eyes as she curled into a ball, her eyes trained in the direction of the village that was still burning by the intensity of the reddish golden reflection in the night sky. The trees created a natural boundary between the river and the village and she prayed that it was enough to keep the invaders away from her as she tried to collect herself.

_They're furious with us, you know, they say we don't belong on these lands, _one of the elder's voices came to Chihiro's mind as her breathing evened out, her chest puffing at set intervals that steadied. _They claim that this is their land—we've been here for centuries! They have no right to barge into our villages and force our people from them in the name of establishing equality between them and us! Equality is hardly something equated to a massacre. _

_ Equality? _Chihiro recalled thinking to herself as she busied herself with her book, pretending to be absorbed by the riveting content as opposed to tuning into the elders' conversation with the villagers in the next room.

_We're far enough from the major areas of interest to really give this too much thought, don't you think? _Another elder spoke up, this time a gentleman that Chihiro swore was at least ninety four years old and had seen enough to last a life time. _The last survivors to pass through the village at the bottom were from far, far West. Didn't say much after that though—refused to talk about it and everything. _Chihiro's brow furrowed at the elder's words but she leaned in towards the tapestry separating her from the elders.

_Still, we cannot be caught off guard,_ A third voice spoke up.

_Yes, I agree, _The first elder's voice said in a gravelly tone. _If their claim to our lands is made, this entire village will be brought to its knees—no doubt. We simply don't have the same resources to even make an attempt to defend ourselves. _ Chihiro's brown eyes slid to the side as she peered out the window, knowing that the elder was correct. Their village was less than eighty people, she was one of the youngest ones, and they had no active defence given they were so isolated and had never bothered to establish any sort of protective detail. Most of their troubles came from foxes or weasels hunting the few livestock they kept and that was easily solved.

Her recollection was broken by the sound of footsteps approaching her and she whipped her head around, rolling her body so that she was forced into a wobbly stance as she shot to her feet and glared angrily through the darkness, her defences soaring as she desperately wished for some sort of weapon to at least give the illusion that she could defend herself. Her body was a wreck and her mind was in chaos and she was unsure if she was able to handle any sort of confrontation but there was a certain hint of pride within her that refused to go down with a fight. She figured she had enough reserves in energy to attempt to scratch out the eyes of whoever was drawing in closer but she knew it was useless.

"_You,_" She hissed as she recognized the green eyed stare as the stranger peered down at her. His garments had changed, she realized, to those of something bizarre and foreign and she felt the hair stand up on her arms as she came to the conclusion that he was most likely an invader. Chihiro felt a sense of triumph rise at the realization that she had _not _imagined this man but she felt her apprehension spike as she also realized that he knew her face from their brief encounter at the fountain.

"You were in the village at the foot of the mountain," He said, his voice smooth and crisp. There was an air of something wild and untamed that engulfed him and Chihiro felt her mind scream at her to try and run away or to jump into the river and let the current rush her away from him before he could sink his claws into her. "I had assumed you were from there—not… here." His head jerked to the side, gesturing towards her burning village, and she took a hesitant step backwards as she realized that he had a sword strapped to his side and it was laced with the remains of crimson ribbons of blood.

"Are you…. with _them?_" She managed to ask, her voice a mere whisper.

"I am one of them, yes," He answered. "I am not, however, necessarily with them."

"_What_?" She blurted, clamping her mouth firmly closed as she realized how aggressive she sounded and did not want to provoke this unknown creature standing before her. His green eyes reflected the burning embers of the village and she felt her nerves fray even more as he took another step towards her, his gait controlled and precise as she scrambled backwards on the slippery rocks of the riverside, falling backwards as she felt the weak grip of her shoes give out on her. Her body flailed as her limbs splayed out, her cloak ripping and her bruised and cut legs peeking out from the shreds of the garment she had left the house in that very morning.

"It is as I said," He replied firmly, his hand reaching down for the sword at his side, releasing it from the sheath as he considered her with an indifferent air about him. The metallic clinking of the sword echoed loudly in Chihiro's ears and she winced, her eyes closing as she knew that she would perhaps be executed on the spot by the invader whose dark green hair masked his face, his eyes tracing her frame as though studying an inferior specimen. She heard his hands grasp the hilt of the sword, her body tensing as she awaited for the slicing of the air before the metal would strike her and end her existence with one well aimed swipe.

"Rise," He commanded, to which Chihiro forced open her eyes to see that he was pointing the sword at her but made no movement to swing it downwards. She swallowed as she slowly rose to her feet, her body trembling terribly, and she straightened her back as much as she could, avoiding making eye contact with him. "You were not supposed to survive a siege—when they reclaim the land, they must erase all traces of humans from there in order to make it ours once again. Why are you still alive?" Chihiro was unsure if she was supposed to answer his question or not but she inhaled lightly, her chest rising and falling as she begged her body to calm itself to at least not let him scent her fear lest it send him into a frenzy.

"Fate is something that not even we ourselves are capable of tangling our fingers into her mighty threads," He said, his words perplexing to Chihiro as she felt her body sway from the confusion and fatigue. "Despite you being human and occupying lands that are not rightfully yours, fate has decided to permit you to keep living—a gift, a pittance. She is on your side, despite your destructive ways, and I am not one to go against fate's control and orders." The sound of his sword being secured back within its sheath promoted Chihiro to exhale a long breath as she sank back to her knees before the deity, somewhat humbled by the fact that even the gods themselves were incapable of going against the great unknown.

"You will perish if you continue to rest here," He remarked icily as his green eyes narrowed at her exhausted form.

"I have no where else to go," Chihiro admitted sullenly as her eyes misted over in agony. "I'm sure your people made quick work of my family and friends in the village." There was malice in her words, something that struck a chord within the deity, and he realized that she was not some meek mortal but rather one that seemed fairly willing to snap back at him. He was unimpressed with her response as he reached down and hauled her up roughly, provoking a squeak from the girl as she glowered at him angrily for roughhousing her a bit. He inspected her bruised and injured arms, her face smudged with ashes, and her dark brown eyes that seemed to swim with unrecognizable emotions. He released her arm, watching as she stumbled and grasped at her arm, glaring at him intently as she took a few steps backwards to separate them.

"If you have nowhere to go, you can come with me," He said stiffly as he crossed his arms.

"Right into the arms of the enemy? _You're insane_," She hissed like an angry feline.

"As I said earlier, I am one of them but I am _not_ with them," He reminded her cooly. "If you wish to sign your own death sentence instead of coming under protective custody, that is your own decision to make. You would also be wasting the second chance at life that fate has awarded you." His green eyes were steely as he regarded her the same way Chihiro regarded unknown substances stuck to the bottom of her shoes.

"Wait, you didn't—"

"—_No_, I did not attack your village or any other villages," He cut her off curtly. "It's not in my interest to do so." Chihiro's eyes widened in realization and she pointed at his sword that was marked with the streaks of blood. He gave her a bewildered expression but reached down and unsheathed the sword once more, holding it out to her for her to inspect it with her own eyes.

"That's blood," Chihiro stated.

"It's not _human_ blood," He retorted as he gestured for her to take the sword in her hands. Chihiro eyed him warily but accepted the weapon, grasping it firmly by the hilt as she held it vertically to inspect it, casting her glance back at him. The streams of blood that she saw were bright red and did not seem to be oxidized like human blood would, leaving a typical rust coloured mark. This blood was dried and retained its crimson brilliance, meaning that he was indeed being truthful with his words. She lowered the blade as she passed it back to him, waiting for his explanation as to what sort of creature's blood had stained his blade.

"This is from other deities that were encroaching on my lands," He offered by means of explanation. "There are those of us who are content with our established territories and I have no reason to participate in the massacre of humans during reclamation. I also have zero tolerance for those who try to slaughter on my lands."

"_Your_ lands." His eyes narrowed at her repetition of his words.

"_My_ lands, _my_ river," He said flatly. "This river is mine—and you seem well aware that it nourishes you as well as takes away. There are prices to pay when my waters are soiled with impurity." Chihiro's eyes widened as his explanation as her eyes dragged over to the coursing waters, she herself in disbelief that it was the domain of the deity standing before her. The very river that she would frolic to and play about in, running her hands through the cool waters in the height of summer, drinking from its refreshing springs. She looked back at the deity who was watching her intently, awaiting any sort of reaction from her.

"I… I see," She managed to say, turning her head back to the village. "I'm sorry to have accused you… of… _that._" The smouldering embers and ashes were painting the sky a terrifying hue of purplish black and she could only hear in her mind the screams and groans that would have long since ceased. There was very little chance that her parents survived, of that she was sure of now, and she could only imagine that they clung to each other as they either burned to death within the fiery grave or were struck down by a deity and their weapon. Chihiro's shoulders shook at that thought, her brown eyes glazing over as the first waves of helplessness rocked against her. She was unsure as to why she had apologized, despite him not being directly involved: Chihiro had every right to be enraged and to be furious with his kind for destroying the very little that she had, had in this world yet she could not muster the emotions to channel that anger towards him.

"At least for this evening, come into my custody," He said neutrally. "It will give you time to rest and collect yourself."

"Custody?"

"Deities with any iota of intelligence would never dare to breach my territory," He replied huskily. "That protection extends to you as well." Chihiro gave him an agonizing look as she studied his face, seeing that he was at least somewhat more humanized than those that burned her village to the ground. She looked away from him once more, her eyes absorbing the sky painted orange, red, and yellow and bleeding into the ominous purple-black, the last traces of her village and her connection to humanity slowly rising upwards to the sky in the curls of smoke. The ashes, the singed smell of burning wood and what she now knew was flesh: that was the product of a fierce reclamation that had completely caught them off guard as they were silenced by the mighty iron fist of the deities that charged forward and took back what they believed theirs.

"I do not expect any tribute or payment from you," He suddenly said as he tried to read the expression on her rounded face. Chihiro nodded wearily, knowing that he was referring to how deities would demand payment in exchange for their services in a process that was designed to equalize their roles. Payment could range in anything from a few coins to gifting a new born baby: Chihiro had thought it to be legend, but the fact it had spilled from the mouth of a deity quickly discarded that theory. "This is an act of goodwill."

"You mean pity," She said softly as she closed her eyes and lowered her head, the shame washing over her as well as the guilt of being the only one to have escaped the siege. There was something oddly laughable about the situation: had she respected the hour and had left Rumi's house when told to, she would have surely died amongst those who perished in the flames. It was because of her selfish desire to drink one more coffee, to spend that much more time with her friend that she had scraped by with her life. It was a horrible feeling of survivor's guilt and she knew that it would haunt her until she took her last breaths on this Earth. Her parents were hardly considered older and they had, had plenty of life left in them and she could only imagine their faces as they realized that they would never say goodbye to their only daughter who had yet to return to the safety of their home.

"Follow me," He said, ignoring her correction as he whirled around and moved towards the river, Chihiro slowly trailing after him as she swayed dangerously, her body finally caving in and collapsing into a heap on the ground, her world suddenly going black.

* * *

A/N: Hello, hello! :)

This is a story that I've been forming in my head for a while, but it has been difficult to translate it onto paper. The greatest source of inspiration is the story behind the song **1944** by the Ukrainian singer, **Ja****mala,** and the history that is tied into it. The song talks about how the Crimean Tatars (yes, in that Crimea) were forcibly removed from their lands by the USSR and deported to Uzbekistan and were not allowed to return until the 1990s. Many did not make it during the process of deportation, dying on the way without ever reaching Uzbekistan.

The song has very powerful imagery and tends to drum up heavy sentimental value. The deportations are argued to have been because of the Tatars alleged collaboration with the Nazis in WWII, but most would dispute that and say it was because the USSR wanted access to the straight of Dardanelles-AKA, expanding their territory in a disputed land populated by an ethic minority. The song talks about how Jamala was unable to return to Crimea until she was an adult, being deprived of the very lands her family came from. And as we know, Crimea is still a contested area with the current occupation/annexation by Russia.

In this case, the translation to Spirited Away's characters would be the humans against the spirits/deities in conflicts over land. I always thought the struggle that combined environmentalist theory, territory divided by culture and language, and humans being a minority would be an interesting stage to work with. This argument is not only applicable to what has happened in Ukraine, even in my own country (Spain), we have these conflicts and it greats a great rift between groups of people. I want this story to explore the psyche of someone who had been uprooted by force (Chihiro) as well as someone who plays the fiddle of being the middle-ground: not committed to either cause but still pivotal and can see both ends of the argument while maintaining their own interests (Haku). This of course creates a very polarized world where two realities are coexisting.

Anyway, thanks for reading the explanation and I hope you enjoy! :D Don't forget to read and review!


	2. Chapter 2

Vertices

Chapter II

A/N: Watch your step carefully.

* * *

_Where is your mind?_

_Humanity cries _

_You think you are gods, _

_but everyone dies _

_Don't swallow my soul,_

_Our souls._

* * *

She slowly stirred, her body weighed down by what seemed to be a large mass draped over her securely, covering her from her neck to her toes. Chihiro's eyes fluttered open and she found that she was resting beneath a rich green ceiling seemingly constructed of green tiles and she was swathed in a massive green blanket whose material she could not recognize. Her fingers ran over it in silent admiration before she realized that she had blacked out and had zero idea as to where she was fingers ceased their gentle stroking and admiration of the fabric, the hair on her neck standing up in warning as she grit her teeth, trying to gain her bearings.

She turned her head to take in her surroundings, the room a green, blue, and white motif that seemed to try and emulate a natural habitat. There were expanses of aquatic plants that spread out along the walls, their leaves waving at her cheerfully, and there were giant white water lilies that clung to their stems, weighed down in their own greatness. There was a tasteful dark brown dresser and desk pushed into a corner, the room gently lit by the warm sunlight that filtered through tastefully thin white curtains and warmed the space to a comfortable temperature. In the distance she could hear the sound of water bubbling somewhere, a comforting sound, and she could smell a strange mix of natural scents that perfumed the room. It was not an overpowering smell and it calmed her frayed nerves, almost soothing her unease as it wafted around her.

She pushed the blanket back and let it pool to the floor, her feet swinging from the bed as she let her feet hit the wooden floor. Chihiro tested her legs, satisfied that they were functional and she could put weight on them, and she pushed herself up slowly. Her shredded clothes had been replaced by simple white garments—a loose shirt and loose pants—and she felt her cheeks flush in horror at the thought of the deity having stripped her of her soiled and destroyed clothes. She caught sight of the bruises on her arms as well as the cuts, staring at them as she realized that they had more or less vanished and lost their prominent colouring. She lifted the legs of her pants and found the same on the expanses of her pale legs: most of the cuts were healed and the bruises reduced to almost nothing.

"Oh, you're awake, are you?" A female voice made her snap her head up and she found a tall woman dressed similarly standing in the doorway of the room, a tray in her hands. She had long dark hair and her face was almost horse like in shape, but she was oddly enchanting to stare at as she regarded Chihiro indifferently, her brow crooked as she stepped into the room and used her foot to shut the door behind her. Chihiro froze, as thought caught doing something she should not have been doing, and she felt her guard rise up quickly.

"Your bruises are looking good, I'm surprised a mortal healed as quickly as you did, honestly," The woman began to ramble as she set the tray down on the dresser and sauntered up to Chihiro as she grabbed the girl's arm and held up up to have a look over, nodding and muttering to herself. It was only when the woman started to prod Chihiro's limbs with her fingers that the human reacted, jerking her arm away and cradling it to herself as she eyed the stranger with a mix of curiosity and disdain.

"Sorry, did that hurt?"

"_N-N_o," Chihiro stuttered. "It's f-fine, but… who are you?" The woman drew back and crossed her arms over her chest, giving Chihiro a cheeky grin. She seemed to be chipper and had some wit about her, causing Chihiro to blink at her in a daze as she regarded her carefully.

"The name's Rin," She introduced herself. "I'm one of Haku's subordinates, for lack of a better word."

"_Haku_?"

"Uh, yeah, _Haku_: you know, the guy who brought you here last night? The river deity? That's Haku… or maybe you didn't catch his name, Chihiro...was it?" Chihiro blinked again, this time owlishly at the rapid fire speech of the older woman, and she sat back down on the bed as she let her hands rest on the silken sheets.

"You're Chihiro, aren't _you_?"

"_Y-yeah_, I am," Chihiro answered. "Sorry, but… how do you know my name?"

"Haku told me your name," Rin replied as she waved off Chihiro's question as though the answer was extremely obvious. "Never seen him whipped up into a frenzy like when he came storming in last night dragging you in! You looked like you've been through some rough stuff, girl. Haku never brings humans back to his private realm, much less women: you must have broken through his thick skull somehow."

"He told you my name?" Chihiro echoed as she clearly recalled that she had never told him her name the previous evening. Her mind's defence spiked up and Rin glanced at her with a semi-concerned look, as though Chihiro seemed either incapable of coherent sentences or was content with repeating whatever was previously said.

"Yeah, he did," Rin confirmed.

"I never told him my name," Chihiro said wearily as she glanced up at the weasel-woman. "Not _once_." Rin's mouth formed into an '_O_'-shape as she snapped her jaw shut and narrowed her dark eyes at Chihiro's words. Rin herself, despite her much more spirited temper, knew that it would be better to cut off this conversation before it treaded into territory that Haku would not appreciate her guiding the rescued human through without his consent. She herself was fairly certain that Haku would have been beyond furious if she revealed anything more and she bit her lip as she tried to think of how to steer the conversation away from the reason as to why Haku knew this human's name.

"You hungry?" Chihiro nodded slowly at Rin's question and was suddenly startled as Rin shoved a bowl of rice porridge into her hands. "It's not that much, but it will help settle your stomach. You had a long night, you shouldn't eat anything too rich." Chihiro thanked the woman quietly as she stared at the warm porridge before digging the spoon into the contents, scooping up a generous amount and shoving it into her mouth. Despite the blandness of the dish, it was a great relief to swallow it and its warmth as she spooned another mouthful into her mouth, desperate to fill her stomach. Rin was right: despite her not having eaten much the previous day, her stomach had been in knots and somersaults and it was enough to quell the churning as her stomach welcomed the food.

"Take it easy or you'll vomit it all back up," Rin warned as she gave Chihiro a sharp look. "Here, water." She shoved the glass into Chihiro's hand and the human greedily drank the contents of the glass, setting it on the floor next to her as she continued to tuck into the rice porridge. The two women were silent as Chihiro polished off the bowl of food, scraping her spoon against the bowl as her stomach and soul warmed up thanks to the nourishment. Rin pried the bowl from Chihiro's hands and set it aside, resting her hand on the girl's forehead as though taking her temperature.

"Well, you seem to be a bit better—I'll let Haku know as soon as he finishes up whatever it is he is doing," Rin muttered as she retracted her hand. "He told me to let you know that you are a welcomed guest for as long as you need to be. I guess that means you can wander around and have a look if you're planning to stay here for a bit?" The weasel-woman gave Chihiro a sisterly smile, patting her hand awkwardly.

"What do you mean look around?" Chihiro asked as she smoothed a wrinkle from the loose pants.

"This is Haku's realm, or his territory… it's a pretty big area, but you're safe here," Rin explained. "Take your time and rest up before you do anything else. Haku didn't really say what happened, but from the smell of the smoke and how you came in lookin', I can imagine that your village was taken under siege by the aligned deities, right?" Chihiro's strangled nod was confirmation enough and the woman made a small noise in her throat, one of sympathy and pity, as she gave Chihiro a sad smile.

"Then you should definitely relax here and rest," Rin repeated.

"What are '_aligned deities_'?" Chihiro asked slowly, the word foreign to her. She had a basic working knowledge of deities but even the sparse interaction with this so-called Haku and Rin had been enough o debunk half of what she believed to have known. The elders had always spoke of deities as being their natural enemies, foes that killed indiscriminately, but Haku had stated that while he was a deity, he was not with 'them', which still left many more questioned unanswered.

"_That_," Rin began to answer, "Is something that you would have to ask Haku." Chihiro did not react to the woman's refusal to indulge her, seeing it as reasonable to ask for explanations from the deity that brought her to his realm as opposed to the woman who was working under him.

"Anyway, if you're feeling up to it, have a walk around and get some sunlight, it will get the colour back in those cheeks of yours," Rin said as she moved away from the bed and reached for the tray, depositing the empty bowl and glass on it. "I'll be around if you need anything, and by anything, I mean anything that you need."

"Alright," Chihiro said before adding a hasty, "Thank you."

"Oh, before you go out, I would recommend you clean up and take a bath," Rin said with a teasing tone as she gave Chihiro a crooked smile. "Not all humans are bad, but you all do stink. There's some soap and cleaning oils already in the bathroom, help yourself to whatever you need." Chihiro watched with wide eyes as Rin exited the room, closing the door gently behind her, and she lifted her arm to smell herself. She did not seem to smell as bad as she could have, although the ashy smell of the fire had not worn off, and she wondered if it was just the deities' curse of being more sensitive to smells and overall hypersensitivity. Lowering her arm, she eased herself from the bed and moved carefully towards the bathroom, locking herself within the confines of the white tiled room that had a warm bath already drawn and steaming for her.

* * *

The warm bath had proven to relax her significantly and although she felt a bit paranoid bathing in someone else's home, she scrubbed away carefully at her skin until it was a rosy pink and free from any smudges of ash or dirt. The oils that Rin had mentioned had smoothed her skin significantly and had smelled delightful, something that she had never been exposed to living in the small village, but she felt infinitely better as she towelled herself dry before reaching for the fresh clothes that had been folded neatly on a chair pushed into the corner.

Rin's insistence that she have a casual stroll around the so called Haku's territory had piqued her curiosity and she allowed herself to pull the door to the room open, exposing an open hallway that spilled out into a lush garden that was filled with beautiful aquatic plants that floated around lazily on the surface of a crystalline pond. There were water-flowers, massive ferns, giant lilies, and reeds that seemed all perfectly placed, massive willow trees drooping over the surface of the pond to shade the water and also allow the ideal amount of sunlight to stream through its vast canopy. She admired the work and thought that had gone into the space, she herself having never seen such a perfect garden, and made note to take the time to sit there and enjoy its ambiance before she abandoned the deity's layer.

Slowly crossing the hallway, she found that there were many green doors that were closed and she kept to herself, mindful that she was guest in Haku's abode, and she found that the hallway rounded around a corner before opening out into a spectacular view from the top of what seemed to be a mountain. The house he occupied was built close to the river—his river—and it sloped gently into the angle of the mountain. It seemed as though he had chosen the highest point as the waters rushed down the face of the mountain at a swift pace, tumbling towards a never ending course that even she did not know where it ended. The water was an icy blue, a healthy colour, and she imagined it was still quite cold as they were high up in the mountains where the snow dropped into its waters. Trees lined the river, providing ample shade, and there were many different types of flora that she could not recognize that shared the space with the mighty river.

Chihiro leaned against one of the pillars that supported the house, crossing her arms over her chest as she stared out over the landscape, amazed and in awe at how much of it was purely green and untouched. Her family and her village had a healthy respect for the forest and refused to take more than what was ever needed but she knew that other villages were quite ruthless with their natural resources, often starving the Earth of them as they worked to cut down trees or haul away rocks and minerals with little consideration for the environment. Her village was in the minority, often frowning upon those practices, and Chihiro could recall her mother scolding her for picking flowers unnecessarily or overusing firewood in the winter to keep warm. Their lands were not as grandiose as this realm's, but the intention of being mindful had been drilled into her since her infancy and she was blown away by the sheer scale of untouched land that stretched down the mountain, fed by the rich waters of the river.

Her eyes were constantly drawn back to the rushing waters of the river and she felt as though the waters were rising up and saluting her in greeting, beckoning for her to come closer. Chihiro stared at the churning waters, knowing that if she misstepped and fell into the waters, she would quickly drown the moment her body was caught up in the currents. She tried to ignore the pull of the waters, their gentle calling out to her, and she instead focused on one of the only trees that had not bloomed despite it being practically on the riverbed. Her eyes narrowed as she studied its form, intrigued as to how such a healthy ecosystem could have a completely bare tree that stood out from its companions. There was a great sadness that seemed to roll off from the tree and she felt her heart soften, wondering why it was unable to sprout its own leaves and blossoms in such idyllic conditions.

"I see that you're feeling better." Chihiro did not turn around as she felt the presence of the deity behind her, his body drawing close to hers as he stood immediately behind her. The human could feel something contained and strained in his presence, something a bit more feral than she was used to, and she tried to brace herself to shut him out to avoid him picking up on her nerves. Despite the fact he had made it clear that he was not a participant in her village's massacre, he was still a deity and she was grappling with the fact that he was her natural enemy by default thanks to the teachings of the village. Rin herself had proven to be exceptionally friendly and outgoing, something that shocked Chihiro, but the cool personality of the man called Haku made her weary.

"Yes, I am, thank you," She answered diplomatically.

"What do you think of when you see all this?" Haku asked as he leaned down, peering into her eyes with a sharp look that entered his green stare. Chihiro felt her shoulders tense up at the closeness of the deity but she kept her gaze focused ahead of her and refused to make eye contact with him, trying to cling to the last remains of her defences. He was dressed in different garments this time, loose pants and a loose shirt like hers, and she could feel the hard muscles of his chest pressed against her back. It was not hostile, or meant to be, but Chihiro knew that there was some underlying motive somewhere to retain such closeness with her in a space that obviously had enough room for the both of them.

"It's hard to put into words," She finally responded as she rested her head against the pillar, her gaze softening as she took in the majestic presence of such pristine lands dotted with trees, plants, flowers, and teeming with life that seemed bountiful and healthy. Chihiro's breath was taken away by such beauty, she herself having never witnessed such splendour, and she wondered how much of it was maintained by Haku's river and how much of it was natural—but in the end, she decided, it mattered little given that it was his domain and he obviously took pride in the health of the ecosystem that fell under his control. There was a tranquility to the air that filled her lungs, a crispness that soothed the burning within, cleaning her thoroughly with an icy kiss that seemed to linger with each breath.

"Does it please you?"

"I suppose so," She replied honestly.

"Join me for tea," He said, not a question but a gentle command. Chihiro finally worked up the nerve and courage to turn to face him and she saw a much more relaxed face than the hardened and cool expression that he had been sporting last night. His green eyes were still serpentine, but had lost their feral edge, and he regarded her with a calmed presence. Chihiro relented, peeling away from the pillar as she turned to face him, bumping into him by accident as he stepped away and lead her down the hallway in the opposite direction.

They strolled by the wondrous garden that he maintained, Chihiro peeking at it once more and feeling her heart warm at the scene, before he guided her towards a room that opened up to the same garden. The room was sparsely decorated, a low table and a few silk cushions scattered about, but it was still homely as it took in the natural light and opened to the marvellous garden that fascinated her so much. Haku gestured for her to sit down at the table, him plopping down on the floor opposite her, waving his hand as a complete tea set appeared out of nowhere and landed on the table without so much as a clink. The tea smelled wonderfully aromatic, a black tea with natural herbs, and Chihiro watched placidly as Haku poured the tea into the two tea cups.

"Milk?" He asked, to which she shook her head. He pushed the tea cup across the table and she wrapped her hands around it, appreciating the warmth that the beverage spilled over her hands. Haku served himself and set the tea pot down next to him, all with a very odd grace that signalled to Chihiro that he was definitely not human, and he himself took a small drag of tea before replacing it on the table, folding his hands together and leaning in to study the girl sitting before him.

"I imagine that you have many questions," He began to say, "And I will certainly do my best to answer them as I can."

"Oh," Chihiro managed to say as she took a sip of the tea, savouring the rich flavour. "Well… I guess… Rin mentioned that I should ask you about '_aligned deities'_… what is that? Or they?" Chihiro watched as his face clouded over momentarily before fading into a neutral expression as he leaned back, not expecting such a heavy question to be tossed his way. The deity sighed as he tried to muster up the best explanation without getting into the deeper connotations of the divine world that would only confuse the human female seated before him.

"An aligned deity," He started to explain, "Is a deity that has bound with a much larger one or a collection of many small ones in the attempts to reclaim the lands from humans. They are the ones that destroyed your village and slaughtered your relatives. They tend to be lesser spirits, which to me—are insignificant, but to you—a threat—and they have banded together to try and retake lands that they historically claim belong to them. That, to them, was the only reasonable solution to their territorial disputes.

"It's also an attempt to spread territory more evenly amongst deities and it is something that the highest of the high deities disapprove of but will not make any attempt to cease their actions either," Haku continued to explain. "There is this belief amongst deities of all ranks that humans are extremely destructive as a species and have done more harm than good to the earth. This belief has its origins thousands of years before you were born, it is not something new, but the actions of the aligned deities are a relatively new phenomena that has only started in the last hundred or so years. The higher ones probably see it as an effective secondary form of containing another headache."

"Not _all_ of us are like that," Chihiro said defensively.

"Effectively, a small minority isn't as detrimental as the vast majority," Haku retorted sharply. "I myself have suffered from the hands of human destruction but decided to reconcile the situation by acting on my own accord. My river is notorious in the region where your village is for having strong currents and for the drownings—that fear has been enough to ward your kind away from dumping animal carcasses or waste into my waters." Chihiro nearly balked at the crudeness of his methodology but realized it was effective: her mother and father had always warned her to never swim in the river, lest she be swept away by angry currents that were ruthless and would toss her about until she drowned. She had always been mindful of the river when she drank from its waters, always mindful of her footing as she negotiated its slippery rocky shores.

"I myself refuse to align with them, making me_ 'unaligned'_, I suppose," Haku continued to explain as he took another sip of his tea. "I have little interest in interacting with humans and have enough territory that it does not merit my participation in their campaigns. I'm quite against senseless violence and I see their attempts as futile—they destroy smaller villages for a reason, if the patterns of their movements are to serve as any basis for information." His eyes narrowed as he glanced over the garden, the sunlight illuminating his face. "The heavy prejudices against your kind is unsavoury, but they have been able to get away with so much because these very prejudices perpetuate the hatred against humans. It's the perfect cover for the minor spirits."

"So many people died because there's simply not enough space," Chihiro summarized as she felt her knees weaken to the point she shifted her posture on the floor to take the weight off of them. "My parents died because of territorial disputes over land that is rightfully ours."

"It is up for debate to whom the land truly belongs," Haku remarked sharply.

"That land has been in my family for hundreds of years," Chihiro said sharply, a flicker of her inner fire peeking out through the unmoving facade she had been trying to maintain in his presence. "It's been recorded, documented, and confirmed! How dare you assume that we have no rightful claim to something we have cared for, for so many years!" She set down the tea cup angrily, her brown eyes flashing, and the deity gazed at her impassively—not impressed with her sudden outburst of emotions. He could understand, but not empathize: the human girl had lost the only family she had, the connections to the land she had, and her entire upbringing because of his own kind's inability to resolve their own territorial dilemmas. Empathy, as he saw it, was a purely human emotion yet he could comprehend the logic behind her angry behaviour as she looked torn between lobbing the tea cup at his head or throwing to the floor.

"I am not saying it is not rightfully your family's land, but this is the root of the problem between deities and humans," Haku said calmly as he sipped his tea once again. "If anything, I agree: your village has been anything but problematic and I have no reason to refute your claims that the land is well tended to by your relatives—past and present—but you must understand, Chihiro, that these conflicts are deeply seated in history that goes beyond human comprehension. You, as a species, are a minor annoyance to the aligned deities and they are indifferent to your pleas. The moment you comprehend their point of view, the easier it is to see why your entire village was fodder for them."

"Well, I disagree," Chihiro hissed angrily as she moved to stand. "If we're a minor annoyance, I hope we're a thorn in their side for how thoughtlessly innocent people are cut down in their prime. There were children in my village that had not seen ten winters! That disregard for young life is horrid." Her face was red from her exclamation and the deity that remained seated before her on the ground sighed as he ran a hand through his green-black hair, seemingly trying to calm his own nerves before speaking to her once more. She knew that he was merely answering her question, one that she herself had conjured out of trying to comprehend the situation, and her behaviour as a guest in his domain was unacceptable.

"I lament that the little ones of your village perished in this situation," Haku said slowly as he, too, rose to his feet. "Many of the non-aligned deities would share the same sentiments, I'm sure—but this is the unfortunate reality that humanity must come to terms with. Fate is a cruel mistress, Chihiro, but her needles have cast a complex web of threads that have already determined the outcome. You yourself are one of those threads—why are you the only human to have survived?"

She paused as she collected herself momentarily, his question raising a valid point that went unanswered. His paltry explanation that fate had decided that her life was worthy of continuing had barely satisfied her enquiry and she exhaled deeply. His green eyes were passive as he observed her, waiting for her rudimentary interpretation of why she was fortunate to live, but it never came as she rubbed her hands together nervously, biting her lip to the point it drew blood. The little human taken under his protective custody was proving to be much more lively than he expected and he found her fascinating to watch from a distance. He knew waiting within striking distance would probably get the better of him one day, if she continued to live under his domain, but she finally shook her head.

"I don't know, this is all new information to me… I'm not sure if I can make heads or tails of it," She finally admitted. "Perhaps this is the survivor's guilt speaking, but… I _should_ have been there. I've been left with nothing now… not even a home to return to." She felt her shoulders drop as the realization that the moment she returned to the desecrated grounds of her village, she would have to rummage through the charred remains and hope at very best to recover something. Chihiro's eyes welled with tears once again, this time spilling over and leaving silver streaks down her cheeks, her arm raising up to swipe away at them angrily. She knew that crying would not revive the village and its livelihood yet she could do little more than to shed the tears that had refused to fall the previous evening.

Haku watched her carefully, unsure if he was capable of providing words of comfort to someone who had watched their world come crumbling down before them. He himself, cursed with immortality, had often taken a passive role in observing how humanity squared off against challenges and was often awed by their resilience to tragedy but something relatively minor was enough to spark a harsh emotional crisis within their psyche. The fires that had burned her village to the ground would leave a life time of scarred memories, images that could never been erased from her conscious, and a mistrust of anything from his kind. It was mere wonder that she had agreed to follow him to his domain, especially considering the rawness of her situation, but he had complied and carried her away when she collapsed from pure exhaustion.

Rin had intercepted him at the door, surely ready to raise a fuss about him tracking mud through the house again, and she had cut herself short when she saw the cargo he was carrying in his arms. The weasel-spirit's face morphed into something much more serious, knowing that the river deity was fairly laissez-faire with humans, but he had asked her to prepare a room and fetch some spare clothes for the human that was unconscious in his arms. He knew he would be relentlessly grilled by Rin afterwards, but she slinked off to put fresh bedding down in the spare room as to track down some clothes that would fit the smaller woman. Haku himself had busied himself with trying to heal the worst of her injuries, some nasty gashes particularly prone to infection, and only ceased his use of magic when Rin stomped into the room and shooed him out, insisting that she dress the human and clean her up enough to tuck her into the bed.

"While I cannot necessary empathize, my invitation to stay here as long as you want to or need to is open," He finally settled for, to which she gawked at him with wide eyes. "I cannot speak for the actions of a collective that I have no dealings with, but I can assure you that you can rest easily here—I will do my best to be of assistance to you, Chihiro. All I request is that you have faith that my intentions are not hostile." His gaze was still soft and she could have sworn she saw a pang of pity cross his youthful face but she just nodded tiredly, before turning to stare out over the garden, her timidness under such a gaze much more apparent.

"I… t-thank you," She said quietly as she focused her gaze on a wonderful yellow water flower whose bloom was nothing short of impressive. Haku stared at her back, seeing how her posture was submissive, as though she were afraid that his offer was too good to be true, and he sighed inwardly, realizing that perhaps allowing a human to roam his domain could result more problematic than he believed. On the other hand, he was intrigued by this human that he was drawn to for reasons that he chalked up to fate's intervention in lengthening her life span in the face of true adversity. She may have walked away with her life, but she was dealt a horrible hand of cards that required critical thinking in order to maximize her chances of survival. He himself, an unaligned deity who was far-removed from the conflict, had been one of those cards, Haku mused to himself. He was a wild card, the one strategic advantage that was apparent at face value, and he knew that she would have to proceed with caution as she learned how to interpret all the other circumstantial cards that she was holding. Chihiro, to the river deity, was quite sharp and intelligent if not extremely lucky: perhaps Fate saw something beyond what Haku was only able to see at first glance.

Chihiro herself, caught up in the moment as she peered out over the garden, was unaware that Haku slipped by her before she even had the chance to ask him why he knew her name.

* * *

A/N: Don't own anything.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter III

_And as I rest my forehead against the mirror, the wall gives away, breaking around me. _

_A/N: Who are the real Gods and demons?_

* * *

I could not live my childhood there

because you took away our land.

/

Yaşlığıma toyalmadım

Men bu yerde yaşalmadım.

* * *

Rin was fuming as she scrubbed furiously at the floor, cursing Haku for having tracked mud in from the river and leaving her to clean up his brown wake as he retreated into the bathing quarters that were within his own private sanctuary. Chihiro looked up from trimming the leaves of one of the large plants that had taken to crawling up the side of Haku's house, grinning at the weasel-spirit's creative use of language that seemed to get her nowhere with her employer.

"This is the _last damned time,_ you stupid river spirit," Rin spat as she threw the dirty rag into a reed bucket, splashing murky water over the recently cleaned floor. "Next time, I'm dumping the dirty water into your river! See how you like that!" Chihiro stifled a laugh as she covered her mouth with her free hand, bemused by the woman's ranting as she stormed off to dump the dirtied water in an area that would not bleed into Haku's river and make him comically sick. Chihiro had committed that mistake once, assuming that it was safe enough to do so, and Haku had reprimanded her as he glowered at her with his hand pressed to his head, citing a headache as his ailment.

"Are you about finished, Chihiro?" Rin called as she looked over at the younger woman, her head popping out from the storehouse where the cleaning and gardening supplies were neatly stored away. "You've been at it for hours! Time to call it quits!" Chihiro waved back, replying that she wanted to finish trimming the last few leaves of the plant before finishing up for the evening. Her brown hair was tied up in a tight ponytail, her skin warmed by the sunlight that bounced off the water in the pond, and she was standing on a low stool as she reached up and snipped a few of the leaves from the plant, collecting them in her hand before depositing them into a bucket.

It had been about two weeks since she had arrived to Haku's layer and the first week had been miserable for her: her nights were entirely plagued with nightmares and soft crying, smothering herself with the pillow so that the other two could not hear her choked sobbing. She made it a point to rise early and bath quickly, scrubbing away the evidence from her face that she had been crying under the cover of darkness. She would then retreat into the garden or near Haku's river, finding an ideal patch of grass that was warmed by the sunlight and would doze there, catching up on the sleep that she was deprived of at night. When she was not lightly snoozing in the sea of emerald grass, Chihiro would dedicate hours to staring out over the landscape, studying things in detail and wandering towards things of interest. She would dart in and out of the shadows, skittering about nervously, but she soon came to realize that Haku kept meticulous control over his domain and would be more aware of any intruders than she was.

It was only in the second week that Rin grew fed up of the girl sneaking out early in the morning, leaving her breakfast abandoned on the table, and she had confronted her in the hallway. Rin's lack of tact and her blunt directness had been somewhat of a relief: she had convinced the human to help her do some light maintenance on the garden, sweeping away leaves and trimming plants that were reaching a bit too high. Rin taught Chihiro how to tend to certain exotic plants that she had never seen before, Chihiro clinging to a watering pail or gardening sheers as she nodded dutifully at Rin's instructions. Under Rin's watchful eye, Chihiro's days became filled with learning about new plants, their uses, their practicalities, as well as how to tend to them correctly. As a result, Chihiro rose at the same hour as Rin, both women bathing together and eating breakfast together before dealing with the daily tasks.

Haku watched how Rin's strategy to distract Chihiro took flight, impressed with the weasel-spirit's innovative way of splitting her responsibilities while also helping the human, and he appreciated the delicacy with which Chihiro worked. She looked healthier, the cuts and bruises now absent from her limbs thanks to a steady diet of the tea he infused with bits of magic to aid her body along in recovery, and he could tell that she was sleeping better as well—although it was still a ferry from what he understood humans required for survival. Mostly gone were the dark circles under her eyes that haunted her during that first week, her brown eyes warmed up and were a delightful hue of chocolate-brown that caught the last glimpses of the sunrise and sunset. The two women would work well during the morning, working until lunch where Chihiro attempted to replicate dishes that her mother made using alternative ingredients with mixed results. Rin would swallow and stomach them, too proud to admit defeat to a poorly executed dish, and they would separate for the afternoon.

Chihiro had taken to wandering around Haku's realm, trotting alongside the river while maintaining a safe distance, or hiding herself in the forest as she counted the trees, the clouds, and the minutes as she stretched out on a patch of grass. She would sully her clothes, much to Rin's overall annoyance, and she would sheepishly scrub at them and wonder why they favoured white linen when it was barely practical in such an environment. She had taken to hanging her clothes outside, the garments flapping in the breeze, and she was pleased that the temperature seemed to remain consistent—not too hot, not too cold—and her clothes would be dry by morning. She would occasionally wash something of Rin's but she had noticed that Haku kept his own clothes separate from theirs. When she had enquired with Rin, the older woman had shrugged and said she had never given it much thought.

In the evenings, Rin and Chihiro would dine together, Haku occasionally joining them if he was around, and the two women would converse about things that Chihiro had learned in terms of the gardens or other topics that he felt little need to participate in but still listened to attentively. He was more or less satisfied that the human had taken up his invitation to remain in his realm during this process of recuperation—spiritual more than anything—and she seemed to smile a bit more and laugh from time to time with Rin. The deity, however, noted it was difficult to pin her down so that it was just the two of them: Rin was either shadowing her or she was wandering around the forests by herself while he was tending to business that he could not ignore. He was content that she was slowly showing signs of improvements and tended to his realms with utter respect and care, often consulting Rin to see if she was doing things properly to avoid affecting him indirectly.

He could still catch the occasional hint running across her placid face that she was deeply scared, the tell-tale signs of tears enough to remind him that she would take time to heal to the point where it was not crippling to her. Haku theorized that the long strolls in the forest were her form of coping, isolating herself from Rin and himself to allow herself to mull over the facts, the information he had given her, and what she had witnessed. He did not wish to disturb her as she reflected, knowing that perhaps his presence would overwhelm her if he were to approach her without the comfort of Rin at her side.

It was only when he returned home from a particularly gruelling errand and tracked mud through the hall that he caught sight of Chihiro smiling and trying not to laugh, at his expense, given that Rin's overreaction was caused by his actions. The young woman's eyes were warmed as she watched him retreat into his own personal quarters and he could feel her eyes on him and his subsequent trail of mud before he closed the door and dumped his clothes into a pile on the ground, kicking them to the side as he moved towards his bathing chamber where he slipped into the water and submerged himself completely.

"Would you like some tea?"

"I'd love some," Haku heard Chihiro reply to Rin's offer, as the two women moved away towards the garden room where he knew that Rin stored a tea caddy and some cups. Their words were nearly indistinguishable, but he could hear Chihiro offering to fetch the hot water and her footsteps scurrying over the wooden floors. He closed his eyes as he sunk deeper into the warm water, his muscles loosening as he floated beneath the surface of the water, his shoulder blades grazing the bottom of the stone tub. He was aching a bit more today, something that was unusual, but he wrote it off as a minor stress injury as he continued to maintain his head below water, content with harmonizing himself with his natural element.

He heard Chihiro's footsteps pattering back toward the garden room, the door sliding open and being left open as the women busied themselves with serving themselves a well deserved tea. He could hear Rin make some sort of wisecrack, Chihiro's chuckling ringing lightly in his head like sweet bell, he himself relived that all was fine within the confines of his own realm. He could rest easier knowing that the sun would set and the human girl would not be wracked with tears and sobbing that she thought she was hiding from him. He had heard her pleas and strangled sobs in the nights prior, he himself unsure as if to rise and go to her and see how he could comfort the ailing soul of the fragile human but he decided against it on more than one occasion, his own form of guilt that his own kind had been the ones that had destroyed the very little she had.

It was only an hour later when he emerged from the bath and towered himself dry, changing into casual clothes that he wore around his abode, that he stepped out and realized that the two women had abandoned their tea and had gone their separate ways. Rin was lounging near the garden, a book in her hand and an sweet dumpling in the other that she was busy eating as she skimmed the text. Haku came to rest beside her, Rin not even bothering to look up at him, and he greeted her to which she returned with the same enthusiasm that she had when scrubbing his muddy tracks.

"What do you want, dragon?" She asked as she ripped her glare from the book and stared at him head on.

"I wanted to ask you something," He answered easily, ignoring the way she enunciated dragon as though it were another one of her curse words. Rin gave him an annoyed look, but set the book face down on the ground, turning her full attention to him. It was rare that Haku requested anything from her, other than to maintain his house, and he never had asked her for advice or her opinion. Rin was bemused by the uncomfortable expression on his face, he himself uncertain how to formulate the question.

"Go on," She drawled, egging him on.

"What do you think of Chihiro?" He settled for, finding it to be an acceptable question to bridge into his next few enquiries. Rin gave him a bemused look, unsure as to why he would ask that question of her when he was fully capable of forming his own opinions on the human, but she finished her sweet bun, wiping the crumbs from her hands. Chewing thoughtfully, she considered his question: it was an open ended question, leaving her room to give her personal touches and thoughts, but it was also ambiguous enough to be problematic for someone as direct as the the weasel-woman.

"What do _I_ think of Chihiro…" Rin trailed off. "I think she is exceptional. There's very little that I could say against her—maybe she's a bit too quiet, but that's not a fault necessarily. She's very mindful when she tends to the gardens, almost as though she's still afraid of making a mistake. It was a bit adorable that a human took such a great interest, but there is that lingering doubt you can see in her face.

"Overall, considering what happened to her and the bits and pieces both of you have told me, she's either very apt at hiding her emotions or she realized that any sort of retribution is not going to get her anywhere," Rin continued as she brushed a few stray crumbs from her shirt. "She's a nice girl, odd, but she does a good job in most things. She's not overstaying her welcome either, I'm actually impressed that she's contributing the way she is." The older woman sighed as she brushed a long lock of hair from her face, crossing her arms over her chest. It was true that Chihiro was immense help, Rin shamelessly reaping the benefits of the extra pair of hands, but she, too, had heard the human's straggled sobs at night and was unsure as to handle or react to such displays.

"I see."

"Was that it?"

"No, actually," Haku answered tersely as his gaze slid over to the weasel-spirit. "I wanted to ask you another question: are we doing enough for her?" Rin's eyebrows arched at the once-again ambiguous question that could be taken in so many distinct directions. She grunted, running a hand through her hair as she gave it some serious thought—there was no real answer that question that could be satisfactory given the circumstances. Chihiro was of a different species, a different race, and they as deities were not armed with the knowledge to handle someone in such a transitory state of emotional stability.

"I suppose you bringing a human to your realm is going beyond the call of duty in many ways, especially since you've drawn the line in the sand with everyone else that ever thought to step foot on your land," Rin finally answered. "You're offering her sanctuary, no strings attached, and you're sheltering, feeding, and harbouring her here until she wishes to leave of her own free will. In the eyes of the higher ones, that would run as close to insanity as we can get. A God's protection is no laughing matter and your custody over her is surely going to attract attention at some-point, don't you think?"

"I've considered that, yes."

"Well then," Rin grumbled. "On the other hand, we probably could always do more—she goes off into the forest when we finish up in the mornings and I have no idea what she's up to."

"Is that where she is now?"

"Probably," Rin replied. "She tends to spend a lot of time thinking there, I guess: I'm too afraid to ask her about _what_, given the circumstances, but I would not be surprised if it threw us back to square one with her. Poor girl, she's seen enough to make the journey to hell and back for at least five mortals." Rin made a sympathetic noise in her throat; despite the vast improvements that they had seen when given tasks to distract herself with, Chihiro was still quite reserved and seemed tentative to stray far from the topics that they had rehashed constantly—plants, the garden, and the environment. Rin could only stretch her knowledge so far and knew at some point they were going to run out of conversational points, something that came uncomfortably to the weasel-spirit's nature of being more charismatic and outgoing.

"So she has not said anything to you," Haku murmured to himself.

"No, she hasn't," Rin replied flatly.

"Should I speak to her?"

"Are you sure you're tactful enough? I overheard the last time you two had a private conversation, she was not happy that you questioned her family's legitimacy to preside over those lands," Rin questioned as she gave him a heated look that spoke volumes to what she was holding back. "If anything, you should wait for her to come to you if you want to try talking about… _that_, again. I may not be an expert on human behaviour, but I could certainly guess that it will take time for her to even warm up to the idea of openly speaking about it. I'd let it sit for now."

"I would still like to talk to her," Haku insisted.

"You should, just not about _that,_" Rin refuted. The river deity eyed the weasel-woman who looked like she had something else on her mind that she wanted to say but she did not press the issue, her lips pursed as she fetched her book and tried to smooth out the page where it had folded. "You asked for my opinion, Haku, and that's all there is to it. I wouldn't tread into something that would upset her, you know?"

"Of course," He replied steadily. "As her custodian, it is my responsibility to ensure her well-being."

"Do you think you did the right thing bringing her into your territory? You know that it could be detrimental after a while if she becomes too attached," Rin questioned as she let her eyes slid back to the contents of her book. "And that's to say without the higher ones finding out: the moment they realize that you're harbouring a human, you're going to have a big problem on your hands." Haku's gaze was unfaltering as he considered her words, knowing that the woman was correct in her prediction that he was toeing a very fine line between what was considered acceptable or not to those who presided over their world and their customs.

"I wouldn't be terribly surprised if they already know," Haku said cooly.

"Secrets were never easily kept amongst our kind," Rin sighed in agreement. "Which is an even bigger issue." Haku's face registered a dissatisfied look to it as his brows furrowed, his eyes narrowing at the mere thought of intruders in his realm. He knew that Chihiro would become a liability at some point—he could not protect her forever—but he also saw little merit in thrusting her back into her shattered world where she had nothing, completely aware that she would wither away like a flower in winter.

* * *

Chihiro's feet dragged her towards the river once again, the familiar patch of grass that she had taken to calling to her to soak up the last rays of the afternoon sun. She had drained the tea that Rin had offered her, excusing herself from the table as she rose to her feet and slipped her feet into the beaten up shoes that Rin had dug up from some long-forgotten corner of the house. She had wanted to have a bit of time to herself to think, consider her options, the same options that she had been mulling over for the last few days, and she had tucked away into the protective embrace of Haku's forest, following the sound of the river as she tuned out the sounds of the wind and the leaves.

She knew that she had to make a decision at some point regarding what to do: she did not want to abuse the deity's charitable hospitality, despite the fact he insisted greatly that it was not of bother to him, and she did not want to return to her village just quite yet. There was something within Chihiro that nagged at her, letting her know it was not the right moment to approach the burned hull of what had been a humble yet happy existence far from the destructive hands of humanity. She found herself plagued by nightmares, less than before, but she heard the agonizing groans and harrowing screams in her mind, the voices of those who did not escape the fierce blaze that her village had been subjected to by the minor spirits. The millions of voices that were brought to their knees by those who wanted to impose something that they had little say in, whisking away lives as though they were scraps of paper and tossing them into the proverbial and literal flames.

Trotting along side the snaking water of the river, she found herself moving towards the massive tree whose blooms were absent and whose presence still saddened her despite nearly coming to its side every day since her arrival. She had spent many hours next to the tree, sitting in the meagre shadows it cast over the grass knoll of the river, she herself lost in the maze of haphazard thoughts that consumed her. The sadness that rolled off the tree often had her looking up at its expanse of branches, her brown eyes dimmed in the fading light of sunset, the cool evening air setting in as she would inevitably begin to shiver. Still, she reckoned, the tree was still standing despite the lack of blossoms and leaves, reaching up feebly towards the sky as though pleading for the great beyond not to forget it despite its fragility. That had to amount to something along the lines of hardy resilience, something that she sorely lacked.

Footsteps approaching warned her that her intimate loneliness was about to be cut brief and she turned her head to see the graceful figure of Haku loping through the long grass, his elegant robes billowing out behind him. His face was calm and collected, his expression unreadable as usual, and Chihiro sat up a bit straighter as she watched him close the distance between the two of them. He did not sit down on the ground with her, opting to remain on foot, the lingering sunlight casting silhouettes on his face that sharpened his features significantly, giving him a striking presence. The mortal girl nodded uneasily at him, unsure as to why he had come to seek her out from the quiet tranquility of his abode.

"I see you have taken to the river," He remarked lightly. "It does not displease you."

"Yes," She replied in a murmur, sliding her gaze away from him. "I can come here to think, I guess. It's nice—_quiet_."

"Is the house not to your liking? Certainly you would be more comfortable there." His question was neutral, once again, and Chihiro felt herself grasping for straws with how to reply to such a question. She had a sneaking suspicion that he was probing for information, trying to piece together the complex puzzle of her current life that she had, had shattered against the harsh and hard reality.

"No, in fact, it's all quite lovely… I cannot thank you enough for letting me stay here, really," She offered meekly. "There's just something about being outside that lets my mind roam a bit more—I don't know if that makes any sense?" She gave a dry throaty chuckle, unsure as to if she was puzzling the deity, but he did not react as he turned his gaze upwards towards the branches of the massive tree that was now housing them both in the sunset.

"You seem to gravitate to this tree," Haku said quietly.

"It's sad," Chihiro said quickly, before clamping her jaw shut as she refused to meet his gaze that slid back to her figure. She could feel the green eyes digging into her, intrigued by the simple two words she had uttered, and she tried not to let the intensity of his stare shake her too much as she tried to calm her nerves from splintering like the branches of the tree. The rustling in the grass next to her indicated that Haku had taken it upon himself to sit with her, lowering him to her level, and she could feel his sleeves brush up against her bare arm.

"It is the one tree that I cannot breathe life into," He admitted. "No matter that my river tries to nourish it, this tree refuses to bloom—the soil's nutrients do not reach it, the sun does not warm it enough to coax its leaves forth. By all stretches of the imagination, this tree has no reason to _not _flourish, but not even Rin's knowledge is enough to salvage it and its poor soul. It has become a point of frustration for both of us as we cannot do more to increase the odds of its survival."

"Yet you have left it here," Chihiro pointed out mildly.

"I have no reason to remove it from my domain for the moment," Haku answered. "It is not hindering the life around it." Chihiro did not react to his simple explanation, fairly certain that there was a much more elaborate one lurking beneath his words. There was a hint of something dark that crept into such words—she understood it as he had but just an inkling of compassion but knew he could snap it back and dispose of the tree the moment it threatened his interests. It was human-like in many ways, she found, and she turned her gaze back to the tree as she furled her hands together and looked up at the great beast of a creature. This place that Haku had crafted and maintained was idyllic and perfection: there was very little in terms of flaws, thanks to Rin's contributions, and it struck an odd parallel that his realm could exist in such a chaotic world.

"I see," She said slowly, swaying slowly from side to side as the grass brushed against her legs. Haku knew that his statement had irked her on some level, her lack of response masked by a flicker of something within her dark eyes, but he opted not to pursue that avenue of conversation out of fear that she would flee from the cruel topic they danced around. As he studied her, he realized that she was truly small, even by human standards, and her beauty was refreshingly ordinary and simple. Her eyes were expressive, betraying her on many occasions, and her hands would wring together nervously when brought under his attention. Chihiro seemed keen on isolating herself for long stretches of the day, something that did not baffle or surprise the two deities, but she was also able to participate and go along with the flow of his domain as she and Rin worked together, their laughter and conversations showing a different side of her persona.

Haku was healthily perplexed by the human that was occupying his domain at the moment: he normally bristled at the thought of intruders but there was something innately innocent and virginal about this girl that sat at his feet. Her quietness exuded an almost wise, intelligent, and ancient aura about her, her gaze distancing itself from the physical plain and glancing into things he thought unfathomable for humans. Chihiro's eye for detail, her care for not tainting or soiling his waters or forests, they left a void in what he had come to accept as normal behaviour from the human race and put into question how many were truly exceptional like her. She reduced herself to be a lessening burden, contenting herself with maintaining a gap between him and herself out of misplaced fear that he was troubled by and grappled with as he tried to comprehend her understanding of the world that she was temporarily a part of.

"Come, let us return to the house," He said firmly, offering his hand down to her. Chihiro stared at his hand momentarily, confused as to why a deity was willing to touch a mortal, but she carefully reached up and accepted it. His fingers wrapped firmly around her hand, gently tugging her to her feet as though she were weightless, and he released her hand as soon as she stood erectly. Haku's faint ghost of a smile was enough to calm her as she nodded at his indirect order to abandon the river and the tree, falling into step a few paces behind him out of respect for the deities that always walked ahead. Her head was bowed, a veil of brown hair obscuring her face, and he could hear her light breathing as they padded their way through the long grasses, the late sun beaming down on them.

* * *

A piercing shriek stirred the dragon deity as his eyes snapped open, his body moving quickly from his bed roll as he slammed open the door and made his way towards the room where Chihiro was sleeping. His feet moved quickly over the veranda, closing the distance as he reached her room and slid the door open with a furor that nearly ripped it off its runners.

They had retired for the evening, the three of them dining together as food magically appeared on the table, and Chihiro had picked at the dishes before deciding which ones were to her palette. She took a great likening towards a hearty vegetable dish that was dressed in rich sauces and served over a warm bed of rice, shovelling them into her mouth as Rin watched in amused horror at how she devoured the plate and immediately served herself seconds. Haku was watching the human with his own curiosity, intrigued as to why she avoided the more meat based plates but not daring to enquire.

Rin had procured some sweets from some unknown place, proudly dropping the box onto the table as she opened the lid and let the two peer into the contents of the box. There were various traditional sweets that were tastefully displayed, Chihiro asking about certain ones as Rin enthusiastically explained their origins and their ingredients. There were components that Chihiro was familiar with—certain nuts, fruits, and berries that humans consumed—but there were a few that she had no clue about and grilled Rin about their flavours, how they were grown, where they were grown, and how they were compacted into the desserts. Rin met her question for question, indulging the human in conversation as Haku watched from over the rim of his sake cup, his eyes alert and bright as the two women cut the small desserts into smaller pieces so that Chihiro could savour them all. Her eyes had lit up as she and Rin went from sweet to sweet, ranking them as she was blown away by the impact of some of the flavours that she had never tried before.

A few hours had passed, Haku having bid the two women a good evening before retreating into his room quietly, and Chihiro followed suite afterwards at Rin's insistence that she go have a warm bath and go to bed. Haku heard Chihiro shuffle from the small table where they had been eating to the room she was using, her small feet pattering lightly on the floor as the rustle of clothing clued him into her preparing for the bath. A good twenty minutes later, he heard her exit the bathroom and sigh, sinking down onto the bed that had been made hers as her breathing evened out and she fell into a deep sleep.

Now, looking down at her as he drew up to her bedside, Rin behind him holding up a candle to light the room, he saw that she was drenched in sweat and she was clinging at her arms, her nails digging aggressively in the tender flesh of her upper arms. Her back was arched forward, every muscle in her lithe body tense and wired as her shoulders rose and fell from the hoarse inhalations. She was breathing harshly, the air a whisper between her lips, and her eyes were wide and spooked as she bit down on her lip angrily, drawing blood. Haku frowned at the coppery scent that penetrated his nose before he slid onto the bed, closing in on her haggard form as he reached out with one pale hand before Rin gasped, Chihiro lashing out as his hand made contact with her back.

Haku did not withdraw, understanding that this act of unwarranted aggression was being provoked by some unseen demon that he knew tormented her, and he rested his hand on her back firmly before tugging her form into his, enveloping her in a protective embrace. Chihiro whined and groaned against him, pushing and shoving as she tried to liberate himself from his iron-like hold on her, but he refused to let her go as she struggled angrily against him. Her breathing was rugged and animalistic, her nostrils flaring as she tried to claw at him but he adjusted his grip to restrain her arms and hands without hurting her. The deity grit his teeth as she raged against him, her cries upping in octaves as she finally broke down in horrible sobs that wracked her entire body. She was trembling terribly, her limbs ceasing their flailing as she was degraded into a puddle of wreck, her tears hot against her cheeks as she gave up trying to escape his embrace.

Rin was in the doorway, her hand clasped firmly over her mouth as she felt a mix of terror and sympathy go out to the brunette human: the night terrors that she and Haku had heard before had been nothing compared to this outburst. She was aghast at how the human girl had been reduced into nothing, her base instincts rising up as she tried to fight against the invisible enemies that came to her in the darkness of the night, when she was most vulnerable.

"Rin, prepare some candles," Haku muttered as to not startle Chihiro more than she was already fussed. "Find some towels—_clean ones_—and take them to the river."

"You can't be serious," Rin breathed as she knew immediately what the river deity planned to do, putting himself in serious risk if something were to go wrong. Haku's sharp look was enough to send her scurrying away, leaving him alone with Chihiro. Carefully adjusting his hold on her once more, scooping his arms below the backs of her legs and cradling Chihiro to him, he lifted them both from the tangle of sheets and blankets and moved towards the door, the rummaging from the other room a sign that Rin would join them soon enough at the river.

Slowing moving down the grassy knoll towards the river, he held her close as he listens for signs of distress or tranquility, unsure as to which would be which, and was more or less relieved to find that Chihiro's breathing had returned to normal and she had lost the look of abject terror that haunted her eyes. She refused to look at him, her head hung low out of shame, and she clung to the hem of his robes with her paling fingers, too ashamed to say anything to the dragon as he walked them both towards the banks of the river near the massive tree that they had been conversing under a mere few hours earlier.

Coming to a stop, he glanced around the perimeter to ensure that the two were alone before he took a few steps forward and began to submerge them both in the waters of his river. Haku could feel a sharp intake of breath from the human but he willed for her to calm her nerves, gently stopping in the water as she came to realize that no harm would come of them as long as he was in control. Chihiro's body went lax in his arms, a sense of defeat filtering through the air, and he slowly began to lower them into the water so that they were nearly covered by the currents that ebbed around them.

The waters were alive and well, pushing against them as they tried to understand why the human was so distraught and what they could do to ease her suffering from the night terrors. They felt her disgust, her fear, and her cowardice as she swore that they ribboned around her, caressing her as though they were maternal hands trying to comfort a distraught child. Chihiro let the water run its tendrils over her, soothing her pains and aches, her heart finally coming forward in a rush that only the water seemed to understand as it whispered to her unintelligible languages that were not of this world yet seemed to assuage her anxiety. She felt Haku's chest breathing in and out as he held her in the water, his entire existence having gone still as she felt the cocoon of the river wrap itself around her soul and breathe life into her, an icy balm on the heat of fright that ran through her veins.

She was unsure as to how much time passed while they were in the river, her body going even more slack in Haku's arms as he waited patiently for her sense of stability and groundedness to return. In the distance she could hear someone that she assumed was Rin waiting on the banks of the river, watching as Haku maintained his hold on the human as the waters continued to appease her and tranquillize her racing nerves. The temperature seemed to jump from cool to cold, her body reacting as the waters whistled by her, tracing her skin in lovely patterns that were seemingly nonsensical to her as she leaned her head against the firm plain of muscle that was Haku's chest. They were both sopping wet, her hair tangled and matted, but she did not seem to care as she allowed herself to be carried away by the water's successful attempts to rock her into a sense of security.

"Are you feeling better?" Haku's voice was collected and solid, a foundation to which she found herself holding onto desperately amongst the chaos of her mind, and she nodded slowly. He slowly moved them towards shallower waters, sinking down into the water and sitting on the rocky bottom as he used his body to cushion her from having to sit upon it herself. His arms were wrapped securely around her waist, his chin resting on her shoulder as he could feel the embarrassment and horror that rolled off of her as the last few minutes were replayed in her mind. Chihiro groaned to herself as she shook her head, still too mortified to make eye contact with Haku, and he resisted the urge to say anything as it had taken some effort for her to calm down enough to be coherent and aware of what was going on around her as she was brought back down to Earth.

"I'll take that as a yes," He said quietly, his breath warm against her neck. She was silent as she leaned back against him, desperate to be attached to something or someone that reminded her that the waking world was much safer than that of her nightmares. Chihiro could feel his grip on her lighten, her eyes half lidded as she peered out over the river that was still cooling her tempered nerves and thoughts. Haku was thoughtfully quiet as he waited for her to react or to acknowledge anything, giving him some sort of idea what she had seen in the world only her mind knew, but the human woman was dreadfully silent as she shivered in the cool air, her voice unwilling to work as she could not muster the words to even begin to explain what she had seen and felt in her dreams, the very claws that tore apart her village tearing into her gut as she writhed about on the bed, her screams chilling the air as she tried to escape and was only found to be held in place by the comforting presence of the one deity that had nothing to do with the force behind her night terrors.

"Rin, can you go ahead and light a fire in the hearth?" Haku's voice was even as he did not look at the weasel woman who had been waiting on the banks. "We'll be along shortly."

"Of course," She answered flatly. "The towels are here." The retreating footsteps were quiet in the grass, Rin's presence pushed away as it was just Haku and Chihiro still partially submerged in the cool waters of the river. Chihiro's gaze was distant and disconnected, she herself peering into something that, once again, Haku was unable to see as she did not permit anyone to cross that threshold and empathize with her in the deepest moments of her suffering. She was guarded, and rightfully so, her life crumbling around her as she was a stranger to herself in a strange land that was not meant to be for her. Chihiro's agony and repressing of her feelings and fears manifested in the night, when she was unable to see the light, and they terrorized her endlessly as she was finally pushed over the edge.

"Take your time," Haku said quietly, "Take all the time you need."

Chihiro was unsure as to what he was referring to but she nodded grimly, squeezing her eyes shut as the water came up and lapped at her, tentatively and hesitantly as she tried to push it away.

Her mind was once again torn into pieces and she was unsure as to what to do.

* * *

A/N: Nighttime is terrifying.


End file.
